No special patient preparation is required. Obtain specimen by standard collection procedures. Full tube required.

Transport Information:

Deliver to lab immediately. All specimens must be signed into the laboratory.

Reference Clients:

If unable to deliver to the lab within 1 hour, centrifuge the specimen for 10 minutes at 3500 RPM and remove serum from cells. Place serum into a plastic vial and store and transport at 2-8° C for up to 3 hours. If testing is delayed beyond this, the sample must be stored and transported frozen at -20° C and delivered to lab within 2 weeks.

Anti-phospholipid/protein II disorders are characterized by the presence of antibodies to phospholipids and proteins. The detection of anti-cardiolipin, anti-prothrombin and anti-beta-2-glycoprotein II antibodies are seen in patients with auto-immune diseases such as LUPUS, and in some patients with bacterial, viral, and HIV infections. The presence of these antibodies may be associated with venous and arterial thrombosis, recurrent fetal demise, and thrombocytopenia. The predictive value of the determination increases as the abnormal value increases, and when two or more are abnormal. Suggest repeat in 3-6 months to rule out transient phenomenon.